1. According to The New York Times, Japan lodged a formal protest with the Chinese government on Tuesday after it said a Chinese warship directed a radar used to aim missiles at a Japanese warship, in a new escalation of a standoff over disputed islands. The Japanese defense minister said that a Chinese navy frigate had directed its fire-control radar at a Japanese destroyer in the incident on January 30 near the islands in the East China Sea. The uninhabited island group has been controlled by Japan for decades, but claimed by China and also Taiwan.

2. According to The Associated Press, Syria's defense minister has signaled that his country won't hit back at Israel over an airstrike inside Syria. He claimed the Israeli raid was actually in retaliation for his regime's offensive against rebels he called "tools" of the Jewish state. The remarks suggested that Syria's military options might be severely constrained after 22 months of fighting an uprising that has depleted its weapons and stretched its troops thin.

3. According to Ynet News, the Palestinian Prime Minister has warned that his state is on the brink of economic collapse. Sa-lam Fay-yad said on Tuesday that "The situation in which we must wait for Israel's prime minister to decide on a monthly basis whether or not money is transferred to us, places us in an impossible situation. If Israel doesn't come to its senses, we will be in danger of collapsing."